"Demand for the use of other library facilities has increased since the closure of Newington Library with around 400 additional customers using the John Harvard Library on a daily basis which is creating additional pressures for the service and leading to delay and other frustrations for customers," said a report prepared for cabinet members.

"This additional demand is creating extra costs including security. The loss of quiet space for use by students to undertake revision/homework (particularly at exam time) and access to IT facilities is a particular issue for the area which needs to be addressed in the short term."

The council is also proposing the temporary relocation of the Cuming Museum – which has also been shut for more than a year – to Chumleigh Gardens in Burgess Park.

Next Tuesday's cabinet meeting will approve the project mandate for the future of the fire-damaged former town hall in Walworth Road.

The long-term redevelopment of the old town hall could include the relocation of the Southwark Local Studies Library – currently situated at the rear of John Harvard Library – as part of a centralisation of the borough's art and heritage services.